Amicus Brief

Washington, D.C. –The National Association of Graduate-Professional Students (NAGPS) has filed
the appended amicus curiae brief in the National Labor Relations Board case regarding Columbia University. The Board is set to review a petition to unionize from Columbia University graduate students and decide whether they qualify as employees, with the right to unionize and bargain collectively with the University.

NAGPS firmly believes that graduate and professional student teaching and research assistants, along with graduate instructors, provide meaningful service to their institutions. They teach classes, mentor students, perform service to their communities, grade assignments, and perform research that benefits their institutions. We argue that this service is functionally identical to their faculty and staff employee counterparts at their institutions and that they should have the basic right to choose for themselves to have a union and have universities that are obligated to respect that choice.

NAGPS represents over 144,000 graduate and professional students at a diverse group of member
institutions. These students have spoken clearly and repeatedly that collective bargaining should be a right of all graduate and professional student workers at both public and private institutions. NAGPS will continue to advocate for and represent the interests of our students on national and regional stages, and is proud to support Columbia University graduate students.

NAGPS is a national organization composed of graduate and professional student governments across the
US. The Association advocates for institutional and structural changes to improve graduate and professional education in the United States and to amplify students’ voices to campus, local, state, and federal policymakers. Please visit the following links for more information on NAGPS social justice advocacy and legislative advocacy.

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ABOUT US

The vision of the National Association of Graduate-Professional Students (NAGPS) is to be a nationally representative and internationally recognized Association that advocates for institutional and structural changes to improve graduate and professional education in the United States.

The mission of NAGPS is to:
DEVELOP, SUSTAIN, & EXPAND a member network that connects graduate and professional students across the United States to facilitate the sharing of information, resources, and best practices.
EMPOWER our members to successfully serve their graduate-professional student constituents.
AMPLIFY students’ voices to campus, local, state, and federal policymakers.